A Touch of Reality
by Kato Chinatsu
Summary: (Set after Link Joker Hen) It was that voice that begged him to "come home", and that undying faith for his conscientious side he had killed with his own hands, that brought him back. But even then, Kai begins to question if all of this is real. [ If I can turn back the wheels of time, to change that past and make this last, let me mend my mistakes and take those chances... -Kai ]


**Kato: It took me some time to think about how I want this fan fiction to be laid out. I wanted this to be something romantic and bittersweet, but at the same time, I did not want it to be obscene, considering the rating of this. So I minimized the terms by using not so… graphic and detailed ones. ****This fan fiction is based after the Link Joker Hen. It is a product of pure fan fiction and does not coincide or whatsoever with the actual events that transpire in the anime.**

**Note: This fan fiction is a request of Blackwing-Darkraven.**

**Disclaimer: Cardfight! Vanguard solely belongs its creators. With such knowledge, I do not stake any claim on it or any products of its creators, whatsoever.**

* * *

_Time only moves forward, never backward. Whatever mistakes that were committed in the past cannot be altered in the past. Instead, they are mended and patched up in the future._

* * *

A grasp of reality.

A fleeting grasp of reality.

That was all he wanted.

That was all he needed.

He could see behind his own dark emerald eyes the gloating stare of his conscientious side, of that once burning faith that he had killed with the sword of temptation he succumbed to. Pressing a hand against the cold skin of his forehead, a nauseating feeling bubbled up his throat, lodging itself there, forming a lump. Swallowing it down, he released a shaky sigh before falling on his knees, feeling weakened all of a sudden.

"Kai-kun!" A pair of arms held him just in the nick of time, supporting his upper body up so that it won't collide with the ground below.

Blue.

A deep cerulean blue.

A shade that he had grown to love, a shade that sparkled in his eyes far more than sapphires. It was that blue, that very blue that made him question himself.

_Is this real?_

Before he knew it, he had succumbed to the tresses of sleep, an overwhelming fatigue that felt as if it had stretched a thousand years catching up to him. There lay his body, breathing but still, in the arms, in the comfort of a torn soul.

* * *

Screams.

Screams and agonized shrieks.

Of begs and pleads.

Accusatory remarks he had ignored and casually threw aside.

He dreamt about each and every person he had changed for the worst upon gaining unspeakable power, heard how they accused of him for giving into power that was and never was his, pleaded of him to come back. To come home.

Tokura Misaki.

Katsuragi Kamui.

Sendou Aichi.

Their voices were the ones he heard clearly, pleading for him to come home. Not come back, but come home. Even in his state of unconsciousness, he could feel a stabbing pain in his chest as if someone plunged a stake in it, twisting it mercilessly. But he knew better. Out of all the voices that tried to reach out to him, only two sounds rang clearly like a bell to his ears: Aichi's agonized plead for him to come home, and the sound of a teardrop cascading down pale cheeks.

It was excruciating to remember. It was merciless. But none of that, none of his pain, could elevate that that others had suffered upon his hands.

_Make it stop..._

A shrill ringing in his ears increased in volume.

_Make it stop..._

Those screams... shrieks... pleads... accusations...

_Stop..._

_"Come home, Kai! Come home!"_

_En..._

_"Kai-kun!"_

_Enough!_

His body jerked forward as he opens his eyes, snapping out of the nightmare he had to experience. His eyes were shaking incessantly, in fear of what he saw or what he had done, he knew not of.

The question of where he was did not surface from his head immediately. Rather, once again, he questioned himself.

Was he free of that harsh reality? Or was he in an illusion?

Cold.

A firm, yet cold hand.

A firm, yet cold hand gripped one of his own trembling ones.

"Are you alright, Kai-kun?"

_No... I am not._

"Aichi..." he breathed the bluenette's name. It seemed foreign to his tongue. "Where am I?"

"You're in my house. Miwa-kun did not have a spare key of your house and we did not know if you had your key, so..."

He lay back down on the bed, his eyes still not meeting that of the younger teen. The nauseating feeling in his stomach once again bubbled up. He faced away from Aichi, pressing his arms against his stomach, not wanting the other to see him in such a hopeless predicament.

"D... Does Kai-kun want me to leave?" Aichi asked, trying to keep his voice composed as he did not want to burden the brunette any further given his condition.

But he heard it clearly. Kai heard it clearly. It was that voice. That same voice that he feared of hearing once again. That same agonized voice.

"Stay," he murmured. He pleaded. "I have... a request."

"What... is it?" Aichi questioned hesitantly.

He closed his eyes shut for a brief moment, pondering why he even thought of such. To ask of such. There's that huge possibility many would oppose, seeing as he could not be trusted that easily after all that had transpired. But he needed this before he could move on. Needed a touch, a grasp of reality. For once, he wanted to be selfish once again.

"Come with me."

* * *

The long drive to their destination was silent. For two to three hours, neither of them spoke a single word, letting the silence to hang between them, to separate them. While Aichi did not know if he should say anything or not, Kai, on the other hand, was too preoccupied thinking of what he should say. Every single word he knew of was all mumbled up in his mind, incomprehensible, unfathomable.

Many had opposed, no doubt with that. Shin was hesitant to give Kai the key to his minivan. All of them, except Misaki, Kamui, and Aichi's mother, had opposed, which was understandable. Their reasoning was but a faint buzz in his ears; his mind had shut down on its own to block every single word that had been spoken. It was a flurry, a flash in his mind, though he could remember the hesitance on Misaki and Kamui's eyes. Neither said a word.

It was understandable to him, how the others had opposed of the idea of Aichi being alone with him on some place far away from them.

Morikawa.

Izaki.

Kourin.

Koutei.

Leon.

Ren.

Even Miwa.

He understood their doubt and concern for the bluenette. But for now...

"I'm sorry for... dragging you into this."

The younger teen perked up slightly at that, his head turning to face the brunette properly. Said brunette was, given, driving the minivan.

"It's alright," Aichi answered. "I'm sure Kai-kun has a reason for this..."

"I..." Just when he wanted to say the words, they lodge up once again in his throat, suffocating him almost. He clenched his teeth, swallowing down the bile rising up his throat.

"Are you sure you're going to be alright, Kai-kun?" was the worried inquiry. A hand reached out towards him, but immediately retracted back after a second thought.

_You won't even touch me..._

"I'll be fine. We're almost there," he answered, looking at the rearview mirror on his side.

_No... I am not fine..._

"How long are we staying there?" Aichi asked. The brunette did not mention anything about their mini trip after all. All he was told was to pack some clothes and leave his deck behind.

Leave his deck behind.

He wonders then... And Kai only gave him the reason that he wanted some time alone, away from anything that would remind him of himself. Of his identity.

"Just for two days. I just need... Some time to think, away from everyone."

Cerulean orbs blinked in confusion.

"Why bring me then...?"

No answer was given then but silence.

The sun set from the distant horizon, painting the sky with a pinkish hue. It looked so serene and picturesque. And yet, even with such beauty, not even that could alleviate the ache in both of their hearts.

* * *

Silence.

A deafening silence.

A deafening silence that stretched on even as they had their meals and settled down their shared cabin, all expenses paid by the quiet brunette. This beach, this beach that they used to go to for trainings brought back so many nostalgic memories. Both happy and sad ones. As they strolled along the shores, relishing the sensation of the grainy white sand upon their feet, Aichi had to just wonder.

Why does this – walking on the beach with the pale luminescent moon casting over their tracks – give a sense of dread to him?

Kai suddenly halted in his tracks, his dark emerald orbs staring up at the pale moon above, his face contorted with unease.

"Come with me for a swim," Kai murmured, peeling off his clothes slowly in front of the bluenette, much to the other's embarrassment. Wordlessly, he walked towards the sea, stopping when the water reached just above his waist. He waited there, patiently for the other to join him.

There was no need to feel self-conscious as they were the only ones there on that beach. But it was just that. Just that fact that they were alone made him ever the more conscious. Slowly, but hesitantly, he complied with the other's request, placing his clothes neatly beside Kai's pile of clothes. Just in the same manner, he walked towards the sea, stopping just a few feet before the brunette.

"It's quite peaceful here," Kai broke the silence between them, still looking up at the moon. "It eases our minds and relaxes our body."

Aichi did not comment on that, simply staring at the other as he stayed in his spot, letting the ripples of water caress his skin gently. He directed his gaze at the moon, once again feeling dread in his chest.

"You don't get to appreciate this beauty so often," Kai continued. "Especially when you're so caught up with trying to distinguish illusion from reality."

His long eyelashes drifted close, shutting the moon away from his sight as he turned to face the younger.

"You don't get to appreciate this beauty when you can't see the difference between reality and illusion."

"Are you alright, Kai-kun?" Aichi breathed, trying to fathom the small frown etched on the other's features.

"Since I was freed from Reverse, from that being the embodiment of darkness, I still questioned myself if this is all real..." He raised one of his hands, cupping a scant amount of water in them. "It feels real... And yet, my eyes see this as an illusion."

He dropped his hand to his side, stepping closer to the bluenette who looked up at him, a concerned look etched deep in his eyes.

"Tell me, Aichi, is this real?"

Pain.

A brush of pain.

A brush of pain wormed its way into those beautiful cerulean orbs, shaking.

"Do you regret being saved?" was the shaky query, to which he respond with a shake of his head.

"I don't. But somehow, I feel like I have lost both sides of who I am. I feel like I'm inside a hollow body. I know this is real because..."

He reached out for one of those blue locks, grasping it lightly in one of his hands, ignoring the shaking cerulean orbs staring at him.

"You're here. I can feel that you are here. But I don't understand why you are here. Don't you... hate me?"

A trembling hand grasped his tightly, refusing to let go. He let out a small sigh, loving the warmth, no matter how little he got from that small touch.

"I can't hate Kai-kun. We both saved each other," Aichi answered, clenching his teeth, trying to keep his voice composed.

"Aichi..." he breathed the boy's name. This time, it felt more natural in his tongue.

Not registering what he was about to do and why he had done it, his arms reached out for the bluenette, enclosing him in his arms as he buried his face in that silky cerulean tresses, sighing at how warm, how soothing it feels to have the bluenette, trembling as he is in his arms.

"Forgive me..." he murmured, caressing Aichi's naked back as his trembles increased, but no sobs or tears came out. "Forgive me for the pain I caused everyone."

"You're forgiven," Aichi murmured against the skin of his chest. "You're forgiven."

"Aichi, no one would forget," Kai murmured, raising his hand to caress Aichi's hair instead. "I harmed too many people."

"I forgive you. I forgive you," Aichi murmured repeatedly, wrapping his arms around Kai's torso.

"Thank you, Aichi. Your forgiveness means so much to me," Kai answered, placing a small kiss on the bluenette's crown.

Small shudders wracked his body as soft but slightly chapped lips caressed his face, placing butterfly kisses on his eyelids, his forehead, his cheeks, and the corners of his lips. His quivering eyelids fluttered open, cerulean meeting dark emerald ones. Unconsciously, he placed his hands on the other's firm shoulders as he was pulled closer.

"Can I ask for one more thing?" Kai breathed, earning a small nod from the other.

"Stay with me for tonight." A pair of hands pulled him closer, bringing their lips just a few inches from each other.

Eyelids fluttered closed as they relished the feel of their close intimacy. Their lips pressed together hesitantly for a few seconds, just the faint touch of lips, before they drew back an inch.

"Always," Aichi murmured, his voice laced with that silent promise. "Always."

* * *

Trembles.

A series of trembles.

A series of trembles wracked that petite body with every fleeting cold touch that danced across his warm skin. Not a thought was given to their clothes which rest on the wooden floor in a thick messy pile as their eyes remained locked in each other's unwavering stare.

"Aichi..."

A firm kiss was pressed onto the junction between his shoulders and neck, causing the younger to tilt his head sensually to the other side to give the brunette more room, more skin to touch, to take, to own. A pair of trembling hands rest upon his shoulder, tightening occasionally. A soft suckle was given to that kissed skin, causing the bluenette to gasp in surprise at the sudden assault.

_I love you..._

That was the resounding thought in Aichi's mind as he allows both of them to succumb to such pleasurable sins. Kai's hands which were unreasonably cold caressed his skin; his cheeks, the column of his neck, the span of his chest, the milky smoothness of his thighs, his petite legs, his thin arms. Each touch left a burning sensation on his skin, pulling him closer and closer to that temporary euphoria both of them hesitate to seek.

_I've always loved you..._

A ragged breath escapes his lips as a wicked tongue licks that suckled spot before it drew transparent patterns up his jaw. All those times, dark emerald orbs never wandered away from his cerulean ones, gazing with a look filled with passion and reassurance. To assure or to be assured, Aichi knew not of.

"I won't force you if you don't want to. I can't do something you do not want," Kai murmured, leaning up on his elbows as he placed a chaste kiss on the younger's lips and a cold hand on one of his cheeks.

Gently, he plucked that hand away from his cheeks, pressing the open palm to his lips instead.

"I trust Kai-kun," Aichi murmured against the cold skin before he interlaced their fingers together. "Just like you, I need to assure myself that this is real..."

A soft miniscule smile dashed across Kai's lips as he leaned forward, nibbling on soft pink lips, asking for them to part, to which Aichi obliged without further ado. As he parts his lips, that wicked tongue delved inside his mouth, caressing his warm cavern intimately, lovingly. The younger simply closed his eyes as the appendage circled his tongue, wrapping around it and tugging, coaxing it to move along, to which he hesitantly did, wrapping his arms around the brunette's neck as he parted his lips further, licking Kai's tongue sensually despite his innocence on the act. Strong arms encircled his waist firmly, pulling him even closer so that they were chest-to-chest with each other as their kiss deepened.

They pulled apart from each other's lips, a string of saliva connecting their parted lips; their eyes bearing deeply into each other until Kai broke it off. Trailing his lips down the pale column of Aichi's throat, he pressed butterfly kisses all over the span of his chest, nibbling and suckling patches of skin occasionally, inducing gasps and soft moans from the bluenette.

"Nngh..."

The hands around his waist travelled up his chest, resting on his pert nipples, twisting and rubbing them. Aichi gasped softly at the foreign ministrations, his eyes rolling back just as a hot cavern engulfed one of his nipples, caressing the tip of the pink nub with his wet tongue.

"N-Not there..." Aichi whimpered out, his hands coming up to rest on taupe-colored locks, tugging on a few strands while the sounds of hungry sucks filled the vast dimly-lit room, illuminated by the moonlight coming through the partially open window. Dark emerald orbs gazed up at him, a glazed look in those eyes upon seeing the pleasured look on the other's expression.

_Beautiful..._

"You're beautiful..." Kai could not help but voice out. "Aichi..."

A hand cupped one of the bluenette's cheeks delicately, as if the slightest of force applied onto it could break the person. Kai's head descended once again, licking the other nipple once before his lips trailed down the smooth skin, butterfly kisses ghosting along the way before his lips stopped on Aichi's flat stomach. He breathes lightly onto the skin, causing the younger to shiver in pleasure and in anticipation, before he latched his teeth on a patch of skin, pressing quite a but hard on it, leaving a crescent-like mark on the skin.

"K-Kai...!" Aichi gasped out, tugging onto the other's taupe-colored hair, as his mouth left little bites all over the skin of his stomach before sucking loudly on them, leaving evident love bites of a bright red color. Enough to bruise and last on Aichi's skin for days. Kai's hands came down to caress milky white thighs, teasing the younger with ghostly touches on his inner thighs.

_Every utterance of my name..._

The older teen did not go further down below, suddenly moving up and pressing their lips together in a frenzied kiss, their tongues moving in an intimate and sensual caress, a caress that belonged solely to lovers, as Kai swallowed the soft moans emerging from the other's lips.

"K-Kai..." a breathy whisper of his name.

_Let me forget what I had become..._

"Aichi..." His arms wrapped around Aichi's waist, pulling him close as he rolled them over so that he was beneath the bluenette. "Tell me to stop..."

_Make me believe that this is all real..._

Aichi shook his head indignantly, closing his eyes tightly shut as he collects his breath while Kai caressed the skin of his back. No matter how much he wanted... No... No matter how much he needed Aichi, he dare not wish for Aichi to cower away from him.

_If I can turn back the wheels of time, to change that past and make this last..._

"I love you, Kai-kun. I love you. So please..."

_Let me mend my mistakes and take those chances you have given me more than once to be by your side..._

"And I, you..."

_Life gives you so much to consider and yet so little time to act..._

"I love you, Aichi," Kai murmured against one of his ears as he brushes away a few locks with the tip of his nose.

_And so, while I am still here, let me act and show you just how much you mean to me..._

The hands around his neck tightened a tad bit when he placed three of his fingers into his mouth, coating them thoroughly with his own saliva. He could hear the slightly ragged breath of his partner, feel the trembles across his skin; such things he eased down by caressing the other's back comfortingly. A touch that did not reflect of a desperate need and of raw carnal desire. But rather, of unbridled love and desire to just stay by the other's side.

"If it hurts too much, just tell me to stop," Kai instructed him, earning himself a curt nod.

Aichi repositioned himself, arms wrapping around Kai's torso instead as he sat comfortably on the other's lap, a faint blush decorating his cheeks when Kai buried his face on the crook of his neck while his saliva-coated fingers trailed down his back, stopping by his entrance.

"Nngh...!" A faint wince as a finger slid past his entrance, caressing the hot velvety walls inside gently, careful not to cause the other so much pain. Kai placed open-mouthed kisses on his neck, distracting him from the preparation while his other hand trailed down to grasp and stroke the younger's slightly throbbing need. He whispered faint words of reassurance as he repeatedly thrusts the finger slowly into the boy's entrance before adding another, scissoring inside, stretching it.

"I-It feels... weird," Aichi breathed, his head unconsciously tilting to the side to accommodate the pair of lips lavishing the column of his neck. Moans spewed occasionally from his lips as his need was being stroked, a thumb rubbing the sensitive tip.

"Do you want me to stop?" Another finger pushed past his entrance, this time, curling inside as if looking for something specific.

"N-No..." Aichi jolted up, his body convulsing when a finger pressed against his sweet spot. "Don't s-stop."

His breath, warm compared to his touches, fans Aichi's already warm skin ; breath ragged as he tries to control his own desire for the other's satisfaction.

"Aichi…" he uttered the boy's name once again as he pulled his hands away from the bluenette, placing a soft kiss on his forehead.

"Please," was the plea from Aichi as he laced their fingers together with Kai softly guiding the bluenette back down on the soft mattress of the bed.

"Tell me to stop," Kai murmured, releasing his hold on one hand. "I don't wish to force you if you don't want to."

Aichi simply shook his head, raising his free hand to one of the brunette's cheeks, caressing it.

"Please," he repeated once again, no hesitance evident in his eyes.

"Alright. If it hurts, just tell me to stop."

Reaching down, he lathers his throbbing length with his saliva, coating it thoroughly in the process.

_I…_

"Are you ready?" Kai questioned him, brushing a few locks away from his face. Aichi simply nodded, placing his free hand on the brunette's shoulder as Kai places the tip of his length by his entrance, teasing it lightly before he began pushing forward.

"Nngh!" Aichi gripped Kai's shoulder tightly, a ragged breath leaving his parted lips as the other slowly filled him, stopping once in a while with every inch that he has gotten inside. He could feel the pain, the excruciating burn of the stretch but endured it all.

_Kai… _He uttered the brunette's name repeatedly on his head like a mantra.

_Can't afford to lose you…_

He breathed deeply in an effort to control himself as he was buried deep in that velvet and tight heat. Looking down onto the body underneath him, he raised his free hand, caressing Aichi's cheeks lightly in an effort to reduce the pain the other was undoubtedly feeling.

"Are you alright, Aichi?" he queried, keeping still so as not to make any unnecessary movements that would further hurt the bluenette.

"I'm… f-fine…" Aichi stuttered out, clinging tightly onto the other, trying to relax his muscles, hoping it would help ease his pain. "Just… give me a minute please."

Dark emerald eyes narrowed slightly as they take in that pained expression.

_Aichi…_

He leaned forward, pressing their lips firmly together as he lowered his hand, caressing the other's skin with feather light touches.

_I don't like seeing you in pain…_

Slowly, he started moving his hips, pulling his length out by an inch before pushing in, repeating the process gradually, pulling out further and thrusting back in more sharply with every thrust.

"K-Kai..." the younger teen moaned out the other's name, clinging tightly onto him, his head thrown back as Kai thrusts his length inside of him, the rhythmic feeling of being filled in a second and empty the next seemed almost maddening.

_More…_

"So tight…" Kai breathed out, panting softly as he grasped one of his thighs as he pulls his length out fully, leaving the head only inside before thrusting back in hard, aiming to hit the bluenette's sweet spot.

"K-Kai! Nngh!"

Fire.

A burning and blazing fire.

A burning and blazing fire consumed his very being, desire pooling on the pit of his stomach with every thrust the other gave him.

_I don't want our paths to cross in that way again…_

Squeezing their entwined hands firmly, Aichi pulled Kai closer, pressing their lips together in a passionate kiss, just in time to muffle the younger's scream of pleasure as a particular thrust managed to hit his prostate dead-on.

"K-Kai…" Aichi whimpered lightly as their lips parted. Kai gently suckled on his lower lip, getting the idea of what the other wanted; of what the other needed. He increased the speed and strength of his thrusts, moving rapidly in and out of that tight orifice.

_I don't want to lose you again…_

"Love you…" Kai murmured against his lips, looking straight into those slightly teary cerulean orbs, showing with his eyes the feelings he wished to convey only to Aichi. "I love you, Aichi."

"K-Kai-kun! A-Ahh… Nngh!" Words jumbled in his thoughts, not giving him a chance to properly respond as his prostate was hit with every single thrusts, bringing him to his climax. "Kai-kun!"

"Close?" was the query, to which he could only nod.

A smile.

A genuine and uncharacteristic smile.

A genuine and uncharacteristic smile graced Kai's lips as he entwined their hands together, slamming his throbbing length with increased vigor as they seek pleasure together.

"Come with me then," Kai murmured, brushing his lips against sweat-matted forehead.

As the tightening coil in the pit of Aichi's stomach snapped, bringing him to that euphoria they both sought for, he only had one thought in his mind as he looked up at those dark emerald orbs.

_I can't lose you again, Kai-kun._

He simply brought Kai closer, cradling his head against his neck, their bodies shuddering in pleasure as Kai released inside of him, coating Aichi's insides with his essence.

_Would everything be even more painful come tomorrow?_

Aichi questioned himself, fighting back a soft sob from escaping his lips as he tiredly stroked the mop of taupe-colored locks.

"_I love you, Aichi."_

No. Aichi cannot live without Kai by his side. Not that he even considered it once.

* * *

Blue.

That deep cerulean hue.

With a shaky hand, he reached out to brush his fingers against the other's silky tresses, heaving a soft sigh at the feel of it. This was his touch of reality. Everything was real.

"Kai-kun?"

Lidded cerulean eyes stared at him in confusion, silently asking if there was something wrong. Leaning up on his elbows, he placed a soft kiss on the bluenette's forehead, lingering against the soft skin for a few more seconds.

"Good morning, Aichi," Kai breathed, wrapping his arms around the waist of the body beneath him.

"Good morning, Kai-kun," Aichi greeted back, placing one of his hands on the other's shoulder, and the other on his disheveled chestnut brown hair as Kai rests his head on his naked chest.

Neither said a word, simply basking in the warmth of each other and the coolness of the sea breeze that passes occasionally through the room via the slightly open window. Aichi absent-mindedly caressed Kai's brown locks, uncaring of their nakedness, as did Kai who simply succumbed to Aichi's soothing gesture.

"I'm sorry... For hurting you last night."

The hand on his hair never stopped its caress, though cerulean orbs closed accordingly.

"No... Kai-kun can never hurt me as much as if he leaves all of us behind," Aichi answered, wrapping his arms around Kai's neck, pulling him up. "Last night was... A touch of reality. For both of us."

"Seeing your pain brought back my fears the night before. That this is all just a form of illusion I am seeing."

"If it is, I want to stay in this illusion forever with Kai-kun," was Aichi's solemn answer.

He chuckled lightly at that as he buries his face in the crook of Aichi's neck, tightening his hold around him.

"I missed you..."

Aichi did not fight the tears back this time around as he embraced the other back tightly, letting the tears cascade down the corners of his eyes, onto the soft pillow he rests his head upon. Butterfly kisses were being placed on his neck as Kai carefully maneuvered them so that now, he lay on his back with Aichi on top of him. Gently, he caressed his cerulean blue locks, saying no words as he let the other shed the tears he had been holding back all those times. The pain to lose someone. The anguish to be unheard.

"There's nothing I can do to change the past," Kai breathed, rubbing small circles on his back. "I only know that I just move forward and mend the mistakes I have done."

"... Are you... going to leave?" Aichi choked out, his body trembling.

"... No. Not this time," was the reassurance. "I did not bring you here to say goodbye. I did not bring you hear to cause tears to fall from your eyes. I'll fix things right, starting with my home."

"Home...?"

"You told me back then... To come home. You, Kamui and Misaki told me that. So I'm coming home, to Card Capital, and start my amendments there. Besides..."

He looked intently into the younger's cerulean orbs, a soft and loving expression in his eyes.

"If I leave you, where else could I possibly go?" Kai questioned. "Or rather, what else would I be returning to if others take you away?"

Aichi blushed a bright red at that though a warm feeling bloomed in his chest.

To love and be loved…

"Stay?" Aichi questioned, cupping one of Kai's cheeks in his hands. "Stay with me."

One of his dark emerald orbs closed at the soft and warm touch in a gesture of relishing it. Slowly, he raised one of his hands up, grasping that hand with his own, bringing it up to his slightly chapped lips before placing a small kiss on each fingers.

"Always," Kai murmured, lingering on Aichi's ring finger, a look of pure honesty evident in his eyes. "Always."

* * *

_A true love is not a simple compromise of loving someone and being loved back. It is a complicated process of loving someone, being loved back, and staying with each other, no matter the odds and the circumstances they both face._

* * *

**End**

* * *

**Kato: So… Umm… I was thinking of adding an omake, but I thought better of it. It would kind of ruin the atmosphere and mess things up. xD So er…. yes. Comments and such are welcomed. I accept criticisms too so feel free. :D ****Any requests, feel free to tell me.**** :D**


End file.
